Perfect Match | SOPE ✔️

initium finis | 1.0.1

Daegu was a mess.

A hot but beautiful mess.

Yoongi weaved his way through the bustling crowd, shaking his head slightly at the excited, bubbling twenty two-year-olds. It was hard for him not overhear their incessant chatters amidst the congested streets, muttering quick apologies every time he accidentally bumped into someone. During hectic times, it was better to remain home until an announcement was made but seeing as this could be Yoongi's last day in Daegu, he felt obligated to bask in his hometown's beauty— beauty he may never see again. Even with the streets ten times busier than normal, chaos ensuing from any direction he turned, Yoongi could still drink in Daegu's breathtaking allure.

It made sense that today everything would be chaotic. It was always like this when August twenty-first came around. August twenty-first, the day that marked one of the most important, if not the most important day of the year.

The Perfect Match Ceremony.

Parents of twenty-two-year-olds were readying themselves for the inevitable goodbyes, taking them to places that in a few years would be nothing but distant memory as the younger generation took a step into their new lives. Parents, wishing their children luck, praying to their respective gods that their children get Matched on the first try, praying that they don't have to suffer humiliation.

Yoongi jogged up the familiar pathway, the wind threading easily through his hair. He let out a small smile at the sound of the chirping birds, somewhat envying them. To them, this was a regular day. For Yoongi, it was a life-altering day, one that would determine his roles for the rest of his life. His eyes fluttered closed for a moment as he breathed out, letting Daegu's nature embody him with its reassuring embrace.

"Yoongi, there you are!"

Yoongi's eyes slowly opened, coming face to face with his mother. He smiled, watching her smile back— though her tired expression expressed anything but.

"For a second I thought you had run away." She joked, her arms wrapping tightly around Yoongi. He stilled for a moment before melting into the embrace, knowing this could be the last embrace he would ever get from his mother.

"I wouldn't run away Mother," Yoongi murmured into her ear, "I wouldn't risk you and Father's life like that."

Yoongi's mother chuckled softly. "I know Yoongi. I was just messing with you." Releasing him from her embrace, she placed a hand on his shoulder, while the other one ran through his hair, her dainty, delicate fingers brushing his hair to the side. "The announcement will be given soon. Go get changed into formal attire. You dress to impress after all."

He nodded, plastering a smile on his face in attempts to hide the distaste that had run through his body. At his forced smile, his mother frowned, seeing right through Yoongi's façade.

"Yoongi, I know this is your second year going to the ceremony, but trust me, it will be okay." She smiled reassuringly. "You will get your Perfect Match."

"I don't want one." He mumbled, casting his gaze to the pathway. "I want to stay with you and Father. I don't want to leave you two alone."

"The government will be sending us money once we are unable to work. Your father and I will be okay, I promise you. Go change. You'll leave in a few—"

"All eligible candidates for the two hundred twenty-second Perfect Match Ceremony, please report to your designated trains at this time. The trains will leave in exactly twenty minutes. Eligible candidates not in the trains by the time they leave will be punished and tried for treason."

Yoongi's mother's eyes widened in alarm. In seconds, Yoongi was pushed inside the house, ushered into his room. Yoongi shook his head at his mother's panic, quickly changing into the already laid out clothes. He paused, looking at himself briefly in the mirror. Once he decided he looked adequate, he looked around his room one last time.